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Experts Refute Claim That OLED Screens Are More Harmful to Eyes Than LCD Screens: It Depends on Usage and Personal Sensitivity
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May 11 News - The widespread claim online that “OLED screens are more harmful to the eyes” has gained traction. Many people believe LCD screens are better, and that OLED screens cause more eye damage, making OLED smartphones unsuitable.
According to media reports, OLED screens have advantages such as being thinner and lighter, offering wider viewing angles, more vivid color reproduction, and lower power consumption. They have now become the mainstream choice for smartphones and other electronic devices. Some users feel discomfort when using them, which may be because OLED dimming methods under certain conditions can produce flicker, leading to eye fatigue in sensitive individuals, thereby causing misunderstandings. In fact, this can be avoided through proper eye use.
From a display technology perspective, OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) and LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) are fundamentally different. OLED uses self-emissive pixels and does not require a backlight module, allowing screens to be made thinner while providing higher contrast ratios and a wider color gamut. In contrast, LCD relies on a backlight source and uses liquid crystal molecules to regulate the amount of light passing through in order to display images.
Regarding the issue of flicker, there are indeed technical differences: LCD screens typically use DC dimming, with flicker frequencies reaching several kilohertz, which generally does not produce noticeable flicker. OLED screens mainly adopt PWM dimming, which controls brightness by rapidly switching pixels on and off. At low brightness levels, some sensitive users may perceive flicker.
Experimental results show that after short-term viewing (about 35 minutes) in a dark environment, whether under test dimming frequencies ranging from 360Hz to 1920Hz, or under DC dimming mode, there were no statistically significant differences in subjective ratings or objective indicators of visual fatigue.
Experts note that the impact of OLED and LCD screens on the eyes each has pros and cons. Which one is more user-friendly depends on the usage scenario, individual sensitivity, and the dimming method of the screen.
OLED offers high contrast and true black backgrounds (due to self-emissive pixels), which reduces the burden on eye adjustment and is suitable for low-light environments. However, prolonged static images may cause image retention, indirectly increasing eye strain (due to frequent content adjustment).
LCD provides better backlight uniformity, but its lower contrast may make the eyes work harder (especially for reading text). In addition, backlight bleed can sometimes cause visual interference.
In summary, sensitive users or those engaged in long hours of office work should opt for DC-dimming LCDs or high-frequency PWM OLEDs. Users with higher color requirements or frequent low-light usage should choose high-quality OLEDs (with DC or high-frequency PWM dimming).
In addition, for near-distance eye use, it is recommended to follow the “20-20-20” rule: after 20 minutes of screen time, look at something 20 feet (about 6 meters) away for 20 seconds. The “20-20-20” rule can effectively relieve digital eye strain and symptoms of dry eyes.
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